Celebrities and Insects

So I kept wanting to talk about all the important things that have been happening since we got here, like my job and Sean's job, but I am just so behind that I will never catch up or get to write about anything fun. So I have decided that I will write about that later if I have time and keep you posted with the small things now when I have a minute here and there.

Yesterday I went to the City Clerk's office to get my "city sticker." I had just picked up my Illinois license plates, and before I can drive around with them, I have to have a sticker on the inside of my windshield that gives me permission to park on the streets of Chicago ($75--it's highway robbery, I tell you!!). As I turned the corner onto the street with the building that I needed, I noticed huge white trucks everywhere, no where to park, and a line all the way down the street (which is pretty normal for right now since everyone's stickers expire on July 1st). I had to park two blocks away and walk. As I passed by one of the trucks, I noticed the label of "Universal Studios" on the side. I asked a woman sitting on the street what was going on, and she informed me that they were filming a movie called "Public Enemy" with Johnny Depp...in the building that I needed to go into, no less.

I had previously heard from a server in a restaurant near Sean's and my place that JD was in town and frequenting a swanky eatery a few blocks away, and here was his actual film set! I tried to act cool, but I was pretty impressed. Stuff like that just doesn't happen in the old M-N. He was not there at the time, but still. That is the closest I have come to a huge celebrity ever.

By the way, I know he wasn't there because the woman sitting in the street, eating Subway and giving me all of my information, informed me that they usually bring "Depp" in later. She commented on how long it took them to get all set up. She had been following the filming all over even to a scene shot in Wisconsin. "Oh my goodness gracious," I thought. "It is a genuine groupie!!" She seemed very proud of her wealth of information on the subject, and I stayed to listen in awe for a few minutes at the lack of a life displayed before me. At the end of the day, I did get my city sticker. Plus I have a way cooler story than most of the other people who have waited in line on other days to get theirs.

Another observation that I made this evening was about how many fireflies there are here in Chicago. Brigita and I went for a walk when I got home from work, and they were all over the place. I can't even remember the last time I saw one in Minnesota. Even if you do see them, it is usually in the country, far off in a swamp somewhere. They are all over the city here!! And there is also a shocking lack of mosquitoes. Very exciting!! The beetles and ants are huge and creepy though, but I guess a trade-off must be made.